Netflix has swooped in to save the long-running Canadian high school series Degrassi, which Nickelodeon only cancelled last week. The show was set to end its 14-year run in July, but Netflix has confirmed that school will be back in session next year.
The streaming service announced Degrassi: Next Class on Twitter this morning, writing that the new show will be coming in 2016. According to Entertainment Weekly, the new season will run 20 episodes and many members of the show’s current cast will be back.
“We are energized and excited to work with Family Channel as we tell stories for the new post-millennial teen cohort known as Generation Z, most of whom weren’t even born when Degrassi returned in 2001,” co-creator Linda Schuyler told EW.
The Degrassi franchise began back in 1979 with The Kids of Degrassi Street and the series has been a part of Canadian TV history ever since. With 485 episodes already completed, the current Degrassi - which was first titled Degrassi: The Next Generation - is the longest-running Canadian TV drama in history.
Degrassi will end on Teen Nick on Friday, July 31 following 14 seasons. It’s not clear if Netflix got the streaming rights for the past 14 seasons.